Missed appointments can cause big money problems for beauty service providers. Imagine this situation – you see your appointment book, glance at the appointments for the day, and then look at an empty chair. As a salon owner, this makes you feel dejected. Looking at your stylist simply standing and a client not answering the phone can make you feel even worse. It’s revenue walking out of the door. In a nutshell, missed appointments in a salon are definitely a silent revenue killer. While no-shows are an inconvenience, they’re even a profit killer. If you’re wondering how you can turn every empty chair in your salon into a flow of happy clients, we have the answer. It’s a salon appointment app.
Impact of No-shows on Your Salon
It’s no surprise that every empty chair is a missed opportunity. No matter what the service was – hair colour, haircut, or pedicure, a particular time-slot was reserved usually for hours in advance which could have been made available to another paying client. Let’s look at the impact of missed appointments in a salon:
- Staff Morale Takes a Hit
Continuous no-shows and cancellations can hit the morale of salon owners and their stylists. Further, if it repeatedly happens, it can even lead to feelings of frustration.
- Revenue Loss
The most obvious is the financial loss. When clients don’t show up or cancel appointments at the last minute, it can hurt your overall bottom line. Even one or two missed appointments in a day can lead to thousands lost in monthly income. This loss particularly hurts small businesses the most as they’re directly dependent on each appointment to meet their financial obligations.
- Scheduling Gaps
When a client pre-books their appointment, the schedules of the stylists and therapists are carefully crafted. A missed or cancelled appointment can considerably disrupt that schedule. A sudden change can leave a gap in the schedule which becomes difficult to fill in. This further results in wasted time and eventually a potential income loss.
- Wasted Staff Time & Resources
An empty chair doesn’t mean you don’t have to pay your staff. Whether a client shows up or not, you have to pay your staff. This means, you’re simply paying for the days they’ve done nothing. Besides this, you’re even wasting their talent. They’re simply waiting. When clients fail to show up, a lot of investments go to waste. Even resources are wasted and so is the time spent to set up treatment rooms.
- Can Impact the Next Client
While no-shows affect the business operationally, it also changes the way a service is offered to the next client. For instance, if a stylist is irritated or frustrated because a client hasn’t showed up, it may show in their work and a client who hasn’t even done anything will have to bear the brunt. This considerably disrupts the continuity of care.
- Client Backlog
When a loyal customer has to wait for an appointment, it can potentially push them to competitors.
Thus, when an appointment is missed, it is not just a simple thing. It has real consequences for the business and the people associated with it. Regardless of the size and type of your beauty business, no-shows and cancellations can be a huge pain. Thankfully, technology is playing a crucial role in turning the situation around. By switching to an online salon appointment booking system, you can avoid costly no-shows, cancellations and missed appointments.
Why Do Clients Miss Appointments?
A few popular reasons clients tend to miss their appointments is because of forgetfulness, unexpected personal emergencies, scheduling conflicts, lack of a cancellation policy, or if the booking is made well in advance with no reminders.
Spa Appointment System – Solution to Missed Appointments
Salon360App is a full-proof solution to reduce missed appointments in a salon. The automated reminders feature ensures a client never misses an appointment. Once a client schedules an appointment on the salon appointment app, a reminder will automatically reach them at various stages – on confirmation, a day before and on the day. When clients are reminded 48-24 hours in advance, they can act accordingly and change/reschedule the appointment if anything comes up. Online booking systems offer immense flexibility. Plus, real-time availability allows salons to fill the slots in case of last-minute cancellations.
Do you want to turn those missed appointments into consistent, happier and loyal clients? Book a free Salon360 demo today!
